How Does of Mice and Men Present the Life of a Migrant Worker

John Steinbeck did represent the lives of migrant workers in his novel Of Mice and Men. The lives of migrant workers were hard, challenging and unrewarding. Migrant workers suffered from poverty because they were low-wage workers. They were forced to travel between American states in search of seasonal work . In the novel; John Steinbeck shows the harsh reality of their lives. During the Great Depression most men were forced to move around on their own to make money to send home to their families. Most felt isolated and found it hard to make friends as they moved around so much because of the nature of their work. Loneliness is a theme in this novel that is reflective of the time period in which the novel was written. Steinbeck shows the loneliness of the migrant ranch workers through Curley when one of the characters says â€Å"Curley ain’t giving no-one a chance,† this shows how reserved the workers become as a result of constantly being on their own and having no stable relationships. George and Lennie are different however, and do have someone they can talk to and throughout the novella most characters are suspicious of their close relationship. During the time when the book is set The American Dream was very much alive. During the time of The Great Depression many people packed up their families and headed for LA as that seemed to be the best place to go. Each individual had their own interpretation of their ideal situation for life. For many this would be fame or fortune but George and Lennie had their own idea. George and Lenny both shared â€Å"The American. Dream† of owning their own small farm house. This is what keeps both of the characters motivated throughout the novel. ‘Some day – we’re gonna get the jack together and we’re gonna have a little house and a couple of acres an’ a cow and some pigs and –‘, George and Lennie constantly repeat this phrase continuously throughout the novella. When George talks about the dream ranch Lennie gets really excited about it even though he has heard it a thousand times. Lennie finds that having the â€Å"dream ranch† repeated to him, soothes his mind and makes him feel happy. Also, it allows him to have something to look forward to. Many times during the book Lennie mentions taking care of rabbits. Lennie likes the fact that he will be able to have something to take care of and that they will be his own. Also, letting him know that he will tend the rabbits works as an incentive for him not to get in trouble, the quote â€Å"But you ain’t going to get in no trouble, because if you do, I won’t let you tend the rabbits† proves that Lennie will try to stay out of trouble as much as he can.

Prelude to Foundation Chapter 4 Library

VENABILI, DORS-†¦ Historian, born in Cinna†¦ Her life might well have continued on its uneventful course were it not for the fact that, after she had spent two years on the faculty of Streeling University, she became involved with the young Hari Seldon during The Flight†¦ Encyclopedia Galactica 16. The room that Hari Seldon found himself in was larger than Hummin's room in the Imperial Sector. It was a bedroom with one corner serving as a washroom and with no sign of any cooking or dining facilities. There was no window, though set in the ceiling was a grilled ventilator that made a steady sighing noise. Seldon looked about a bit ruefully. Hummin interpreted that look with his usual assured manner and said, â€Å"It's only for tonight, Seldon. Tomorrow morning someone will come to install you at the University and you will be more comfortable.† â€Å"Pardon me, Hummin, but how do you know that?† â€Å"I will make arrangements. I know one or two people here†-he smiled briefly without humor-â€Å"and I have a favor or two I can ask repayment for. Now let's go into some details.† He gazed steadily at Seldon and said, â€Å"Whatever you have left in your hotel room is lost. Does that include anything irreplaceable?† â€Å"Nothing really irreplaceable. I have some personal items I value for their association with my past life, but if they are gone, they are gone. There are, of course, some notes on my paper. Some calculations. The paper itself.† â€Å"Which is now public knowledge until such time as it is removed from circulation as dangerous-which it probably will be. Still, I'll be able to get my hands on a copy, I'm sure. In any case, you can reconstruct it, can't you?† â€Å"I can. That's why I said there was nothing really irreplaceable. Also, I've lost nearly a thousand credits, some books, clothing, my tickets back to Helicon, things like that.† â€Å"All replaceable.-Now I will arrange for you to have a credit tile in my name, charged to me. That will take care of ordinary expenses.† â€Å"That's unusually generous of you. I can't accept it.† â€Å"It's not generous at all, since I'm hoping to save the Empire in that fashion. You must accept it.† â€Å"But how much can you afford, Hummin? I'll be using it, at best, with an uneasy conscience.† â€Å"Whatever you need for survival or reasonable comfort I can afford, Seldon. Naturally, I wouldn't want you to try to buy the University gymnasium or hand out a million credits in largess.† â€Å"You needn't worry, but with my name on record-â€Å" â€Å"It might as well be. It is absolutely forbidden for the Imperial government to exercise any security control over the University or its members. There is complete freedom. Anything can be discussed here, anything can be said here.† â€Å"What about violent crime?† â€Å"Then the University authorities themselves handle it, with reason and care-and there are virtually no crimes of violence. The students and faculty appreciate their freedom and understand its terms. Too much rowdiness, the beginning of riot and bloodshed, and the government may feel it has a right to break the unwritten agreement and send in the troops. No one wants that, not even the government, so a delicate balance is maintained. In other words, Demerzel himself can not have you plucked out of the University without a great deal more cause than anyone in the University has given the government in at least a century and a half. On the other hand, if you are lured off the grounds by a student-agent-â€Å" â€Å"Are there student-agents?† â€Å"How can I say? There may be. Any ordinary individual can be threatened or maneuvered or simply bought-and may remain thereafter in the service of Demerzel or of someone else, for that matter. So I must emphasize this: You are safe in any reasonable sense, but no one is absolutely safe. You will have to be careful. But though I give you that warning, I don't want you to cower through life. On the whole, you will be far more secure here than you would have been if you had returned to Helicon or gone to any world of the Galaxy outside Trantor.† â€Å"I hope so,† said Seldon drearily. â€Å"I know so,† said Hummin, â€Å"Or I would not feel it wise to leave you.† â€Å"Leave me?† Seldon looked up sharply. â€Å"You can't do that. You know this world. I don't.† â€Å"You will be with others who know this world, who know this part of it, in fact, even better than I do. As for myself, I must go. I have been with you all this day and I dare not abandon my own life any longer. I must not attract too much attention to myself. Remember that I have my own insecurities, just as you have yours.† Seldon blushed. â€Å"You're right. I can't expect you to endanger yourself indefinitely on my behalf. I hope you are not already ruined.† Hummin said coolly, â€Å"Who can tell? We live in dangerous times. Just remember that if anyone can make the times safe-if not for ourselves, then for those who follow after us-it is you. Let that thought be your driving force, Seldon.† 17. Sleep eluded Seldon. He tossed and turned in the dark, thinking. He had have never felt quite so alone or quite so helpless as he did after Hummin had nodded, pressed his hand briefly, and left him behind. Now he was on a strange world-and in a strange part of that world. He was without the only person he could consider a friend (and that of less than a day's duration) and he had no idea of where he was going or what he would be doing, either tomorrow or at any time in the future. None of that was conducive to sleep so, of course, at about the time he decided, hopelessly, that he would not sleep that night or, possibly, ever again, exhaustion overtook him†¦ When he woke up it was still dark-or not quite, for across the room he saw a red light flashing brightly and rapidly, accompanied by a harsh, intermittent buzz. Undoubtedly, it was that which had awakened him. As he tried to remember where he was and to make some sort of sense out of the limited messages his senses were receiving, the flashing and buzzing ceased and he became aware of a peremptory rapping. Presumably, the rapping was at the door, but he didn't remember where the door was. Presumably, also, there was a contact that would flood the room with light, but he didn't remember where that was either. He sat up in bed and felt along the wall to his left rather desperately while calling out, â€Å"One moment, please.† He found the necessary contact and the room suddenly bloomed with a soft light. He scrambled out of bed, blinking, still searching for the door, finding it, reaching out to open it, remembering caution at the last moment, and saying in a suddenly stern, no-nonsense voice, â€Å"Who's there?† A rather gentle woman's voice said, â€Å"My dame is Dors Venabili and I have come to see Dr. Hari Seldon.† Even as that was said, a woman was standing just in front of the door, without that door ever having been opened. For a moment, Hari Seldon stared at her in surprise, then realized that he was wearing only a one-piece undergarment. He let out a strangled gasp and dashed for the bed and only then realized that he was staring at a holograph. It lacked the hard edge of reality and it became apparent the woman wasn't looking at him. She was merely showing herself for identification. He paused, breathing hard, then said, raising his voice to be heard through the door, â€Å"If you'll wait, I'll be with you. Give me†¦ maybe half an hour.† The woman-or the holograph, at any rate-said, â€Å"I'll wait,† and disappeared. There was no shower, so he sponged himself, making a rare mess on the tiled floor in the washroom corner. There was toothpaste but no toothbrush, so he used his finger. He had no choice but to put on the clothes he had been wearing the day before. He finally opened the door. He realized, even as he did so, that she had not really identified herself. She had merely given a name and Hummin had not told him whom to expect, whether it was to be this Dors Somebody or anyone else. He had felt secure because the holograph was that of a personable young woman, but for all he knew there might be half a dozen hostile young men with her. He peered out cautiously, saw only the woman, then opened the door sufficiently to allow her to enter. He immediately closed and locked the door behind her. â€Å"Pardon me,† he said, â€Å"What time is it?† â€Å"Nine,† she said, â€Å"The day has long since begun.† As far as official time was concerned, Trantor held to Galactic Standard, since only so could sense be made out of interstellar commerce and governmental dealings. Each world, however, also had a local time system and Seldon had not yet come to the point where he felt at home with casual Trantorian references to the hour. â€Å"Midmorning?† he said. â€Å"Of course.† â€Å"There are no windows in this room,† he said defensively. Dors walked to his bed, reached out, and touched a small dark spot on the wall. Red numbers appeared on the ceiling just over his pillow. They read: 0903. She smiled without superiority. â€Å"I'm sorry,† she said. â€Å"But I rather assumed Chetter Hummin would have told you I'd be coming for you at nine. The trouble with him is he's so used to knowing, he sometimes forgets that others occasionally don't know.-And I shouldn't have used radio-holographic identification. I imagine you don't have it on Helicon and I'm afraid I must have alarmed you.† Seldon felt himself relax. She seemed natural and friendly and the casual reference to Hummin reassured him. He said, â€Å"You're quite wrong about Helicon, Miss-â€Å" â€Å"Please call me Dors.† â€Å"You're still wrong about Helicon, Dors. We do have radioholography, but I've never been able to afford the equipment. Nor could anyone in my circle, so I haven't actually had the experience. But I understood what had happened soon enough.† He studied her. She was not very tall, average height for a woman, he judged. Her hair was a reddish-gold, though not very bright, and was arranged in shore curls about her head. (He had seen a number of women in Trantor with their hair so arranged. It was apparently a local fashion that would have been laughed at in Helicon.) She was not amazingly beautiful, but was quite pleasant to look at, this being helped by full lips that seemed to have a slight humorous curl to them. She was slim, well-built, and looked quite young. (Too young, he thought uneasily, to be of use perhaps.) â€Å"Do I pass inspection?† she asked. (She seemed to have Hummin's trick of guessing his thoughts, Seldon thought, or perhaps he himself lacked the trick of hiding them.) He said, â€Å"I'm sorry. I seem to have been staring, but I've only been trying to evaluate you. I'm in a strange place. I know no one and have no friends.† â€Å"Please, Dr. Seldon, count me as a friend. Mr. Hummin has asked me to take care of you.† Seldon smiled ruefully. â€Å"You may be a little young for the job.† â€Å"You'll find I am not.† â€Å"Well, I'll try to be as little trouble as possible. Could you please repeat your name?† â€Å"Dors Venabili.† She spelled the last name and emphasized the stress on the second syllable. â€Å"As I said, please call me Dors and if you don't object too strenuously I will call you Hari. We're quite informal here at the University and there is an almost self-conscious effort to show no signs of status, either inherited or professional.† â€Å"Please, by all means, call me Hari.† â€Å"Good. I shall remain informal then. For instance, the instinct for formality, if there is such a thing, would cause me to ask permission to sit down. Informally, however, I shall just sit.† She then sat down on the one chair in the room. Seldon cleared his throat. â€Å"Clearly, I'm not at all in possession of my ordinary faculties. I should have asked you to sit.† He sat down on the side of his crumpled bed and wished he had thought to straighten it out somewhat-but he had been caught by surprise. She said pleasantly, â€Å"This is how it's going to work, Hari. First, we'll go to breakfast at one of the University cafes. Then I'll get you a room in one of the domiciles-a better room than this. You'll have a window. Hummin has instructed me to get you a credit tile in his name, but it will take me a day or two to extort one out of the University bureaucracy. Until that's done, I'll be responsible for your expenses and you can pay me back later.-And we can use you. Chetter Hummin told me you're a mathematician and for some reason there's a serious lack of good ones at the University.† â€Å"Did Hummin tell you that I was a good mathematician?† â€Å"As a matter of fact, he did. He said you were a remarkable man-â€Å" â€Å"Well.† Seldon looked down at his fingernails. â€Å"I would like to be considered so, but Hummin knew me for less than a day and, before that, he had heard me present a paper, the quality of which he has no way of judging. I think he was just being polite.† â€Å"I don't think so,† said Dors. â€Å"He is a remarkable person himself and has had a great deal of experience with people. I'll go by his judgment. In any case, I imagine you'll have a chance to prove yourself. You can program computers, I suppose.† â€Å"Of course.† â€Å"I'm talking about teaching computers, you understand, and I'm asking if you can devise programs to teach various phases of contemporary mathematics.† â€Å"Yes, that's part of my profession. I'm assistant professor of mathematics at the University of Helicon.† She said, â€Å"Yes, I know. Hummin told me that. It means, of course, that everyone will know you are a non-Trantorian, but that will present no serious problems. We're mainly Trantorian here at the University, but there's a substantial minority of Outworlders from any number of different worlds and that's accepted. I won't say that you'll never hear a planetary slur but actually the Outworlders are more likely to use them than the Trantorians. I'm an Outworlder myself, by the way.† â€Å"Oh?† He hesitated and then decided it would be only polite to ask. â€Å"What world are you from?† â€Å"I'm from Cinna. Have you ever heard of it?† He'd be caught out if he was polite enough to lie, Seldon decided, so he said, â€Å"No.† â€Å"I'm not surprised. It's probably of even less account than Helicon is. Anyway, to get back to the programming of mathematical teaching computers, I suppose that that can be done either proficiently or poorly.† â€Å"Absolutely.† â€Å"And you would do it proficiently.† â€Å"I would like to think so.† â€Å"There you are, then. The University will pay you for that, so let's go out and eat. Did you sleep well, by the way?† â€Å"Surprisingly, I did.† â€Å"And are you hungry?† â€Å"Yes, but-† He hesitated. She said cheerfully, â€Å"But you're worried about the quality of the food, is that it? Well, don't be. Being an Outworlder myself, I can understand your feelings about the strong infusion of microfood into everything, but the University menus aren't bad. In the faculty dining room, at least. The students suffer a bit, but that serves to harden them.† She rose and turned to the door, but stopped when Seldon could not keep himself from saying, â€Å"Are you a member of the faculty?† She turned and smiled at him impishly. â€Å"Don't I look old enough? I got my doctorate two years ago at Cinna and I've been here ever since. In two weeks, I'll be thirty.† â€Å"Sorry,† said Seldon, smiling in his turn, â€Å"but you can't expect to look twenty-four and not raise doubts as to your academic status.† â€Å"Aren't you nice?† said Dors and Seldon felt a certain pleasure wash over him. After all, he thought, you can't exchange pleasantries with an attractive woman and feel entirely like a stranger. 18. Dors was right. Breakfast was by no means bad. There was something that was unmistakably eggy and the meat was pleasantly smoked. The chocolate drink (Trantor was strong on chocolate and Seldon did not mind that) was probably synthetic, but it was tasty and the breakfast rolls were good. He felt is only right to say as much. â€Å"This has been a very pleasant breakfast. Food. Surroundings. Everything.† â€Å"I'm delighted you think so,† said Dors. Seldon looked about. There were a bank of windows in one wall and while actual sunlight did not enter (he wondered if, after a while, he would learn to be satisfied with diffuse daylight and would cease to look for patches of sunlight in a room), the place was light enough. In fact, it was quite bright, for the local weather computer had apparently decided is was time for a sharp, clear day. The cables were arranged for four apiece and most were occupied by the full number, but Dors and Seldon remained alone at theirs. Dors had called over some of the men and women and had introduced them. All had been polite, but none had joined them. Undoubtedly, Dors intended that to be so, but Seldon did not see how she managed to arrange it. He said, â€Å"You haven't introduced me to any mathematicians, Dors.† â€Å"I haven't seen any that I know. Most mathematicians start the day early and have classes by eight. My own feeling is that any student so foolhardy as to take mathematics wants to get that part of the course over with as soon as possible.† â€Å"I take it you're not a mathematician yourself.† â€Å"Anything but,† said Dors with a short laugh. â€Å"Anything. History is my field. I've already published some studies on the rise of Trantor-I mean the primitive kingdom, not this world. I suppose that will end up as my field of specialization-Royal Trantor.† â€Å"Wonderful,† said Seldon. â€Å"Wonderful?† Dors looked at him quizzically. â€Å"Are you interested in Royal Trantor too?† â€Å"In a way, yes. That and other things like that. I've never really studied history and I should have.† â€Å"Should you? If you had studied history, you'd scarcely have had time to study mathematics and mathematicians are very much needed-especially at this University. We're full to here with historians,† she said, raising her hand to her eyebrows, â€Å"and economists and political scientists, but we're short on science and mathematics. Chetter Hummin pointed that out to me once. He called it the decline of science and seemed to think it was a general phenomenon.† Seldon said, â€Å"Of course, when I say I should have studied history, I don't mean that I should have made it a life work. I meant I should have studied enough to help me in my mathematics. My field of specialization is the mathematical analysis of social structure.† â€Å"Sounds horrible.† â€Å"In a way, it is. It's very complicated and without my knowing a great deal more about how societies evolved it's hopeless. My picture is too static, you see.† â€Å"I can't see because I know nothing about it. Chetter told me you were developing something called psychohistory and that it was important. Have I got it right? Psychohistory?† â€Å"That's right. I should have called it ‘psychosociology,' but it seemed to me that was too ugly a word. Or perhaps I knew instinctively that a knowledge of history was necessary and then didn't pay sufficient attention to my thoughts.† â€Å"Psychohistory does sound better, but I don't know what it is.† â€Å"I scarcely do myself.† He brooded a few minutes, looking at the woman on the other side of the table and feeling that she might make this exile of his seem a little less like an exile. He thought of the other woman he had known a few years ago, but blocked it off with a determined effort. If he ever found another companion, it would have to be one who understood scholarship and what it demanded of a person. To get his mind onto a new track, he said, â€Å"Chetter Hummin told me that the University is in no way troubled by the government.† â€Å"He's right.† Seldon shook his head. â€Å"That seems rather unbelievably forbearing of the Imperial government. The educational institutions on Helicon are by no means so independent of governmental pressures.† â€Å"Nor on Cinna. Nor on any Outworld, except perhaps for one or two of the largest. Trantor is another matter.† â€Å"Yes, but why?† â€Å"Because it's the center of the Empire. The universities here have enormous prestige. Professionals are turned out by any university anywhere, but the administrators of the Empire-the high officials, the countless millions of people who represent the tentacles of Empire reaching into every corner of the Galaxy-are educated right here on Trantor.† â€Å"I've never seen the statistics-† began Seldon. â€Å"Take my word for it. It is important that the officials of the Empire have some common ground, some special feeling for the Empire. And they can't all be native Trantorians or else the Outworlds would grow restless. For that reason, Trantor must attract millions of Outworlders for education here. It doesn't matter where they come from or what their home accent or culture may be, as long as they pick up the Trantorian patina and identify themselves with a Trantorian educational background. That's what holds the Empire together. The Outworlds are also less restive when a noticeable portion of the administrators who represent the Imperial government are their own people by birth and upbringing.† Seldon felt embarrassed again. This was something he had never given any thought to. He wondered if anyone could be a truly great mathematician if mathematics was all he knew. He said, â€Å"Is this common knowledge?† â€Å"I suppose it isn't,† said Dors after some thought. â€Å"There's so much knowledge to be had that specialists cling to their specialties as a shield against having to know anything about anything else. They avoid being drowned.† â€Å"Yet you know it.† â€Å"But that's my specialty. I'm a historian who deals with the rise of Royal Trantor and this administrative technique was one of the ways in which Trantor spread its influence and managed the transition from Royal Trantor to Imperial Trantor.† Seldon said, almost as though muttering to himself, â€Å"How harmful overspecialization is. It cuts knowledge at a million points and leaves it bleeding.† Dors shrugged. â€Å"What can one do?-But you see, if Trantor is going to attract Outworlders to Trantorian universities, it has to give them something in return for uprooting themselves and going to a strange world with an incredibly artificial structure and unusual ways. I've been here two years and I'm still not used to it. I may never get used to it. But then, of course, I don't intend to be an administrator, so I'm not forcing myself to be a Trantorian. â€Å"And what Trantor offers in exchange is not only the promise of a position with high status, considerable power, and money, of course, but also freedom. While students are having their-education, they are free to denounce the government, demonstrate against it peacefully, work out their own theories and points of view. They enjoy that and many come here so that they can experience the sensation of liberty.† â€Å"I imagine,† said Seldon, â€Å"that it helps relieve pressure as well. They work off all their resentments, enjoy all the smug self-satisfaction a young revolutionary would have, and by the time they take their place in the Imperial hierarchy, they are ready to settle down into conformity and obedience.† Dors nodded. â€Å"You may be right. In any case, the government, for all these reasons, carefully preserves the freedom of the universities. It's not a matter of their being forbearing at all-only clever.† â€Å"And if you're not going to be an administrator, Dors, what are you going to be?† â€Å"A historian. I'll teach, put book-films of my own into the programming.† â€Å"Not much status, perhaps.† â€Å"Not much money, Hari, which is more important. As for status, that's the sort of push and pull I'd just as soon avoid. I've seen many people with status, but I'm still looking for a happy one. Status won't sit still under you; you have to continually fight to keep from sinking. Even Emperors manage to come to bad ends most of the time. Someday I may just go back to Cinna and be a professor.† â€Å"And a Trantorian education will give you status.† Dors laughed. â€Å"I suppose so, but on Cinna who would care? It's a dull world, full of farms and with lots of cattle, both four-legged and two-legged.† â€Å"Won't you find it dull after Trantor?† â€Å"Yes, that's what I'm counting on. And if it gets too dull, I can always wangle a grant to go here or there to do a little historical research. That's the advantage of my field.† â€Å"A mathematician, on the other hand,† said Seldon with a trace of bitterness at something that had never before bothered him, â€Å"is expected to sit at his computer and think. And speaking of computers-† He hesitated. Breakfast was done and it seemed to him more than likely she had some duties of her own to attend to. But she did not seem to be in any great hurry to leave. â€Å"Yes? Speaking of computers?† â€Å"Would I be able to get permission to use the history library?† Now it was she who hesitated. â€Å"I think that can be arranged. If you work on mathematics programming, you'll probably be viewed as a quasi-member of the faculty and I could ask for you to be given permission. Only-â€Å" â€Å"Only?† â€Å"I don't want to hurt your feelings, but you're a mathematician and you say you know nothing about history. Would you know how to make use of a history library?† Seldon smiled. â€Å"I suppose you use computers very much like those in a mathematics library.† â€Å"We do, but the programming for each specialty has quirks of its own. You don't know the standard reference book-films, the quick methods of winnowing and skipping. You may be able to find a hyperbolic interval in the dark†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"You mean hyperbolic integral,† interrupted Seldon softly. Dors ignored him. â€Å"But you probably won't know how to get the terms of the Treaty of Poldark in less than a day and a half.† â€Å"I suppose I could learn.† â€Å"If†¦ if†¦Ã¢â‚¬  She looked a little troubled. â€Å"If you want to, I can make a suggestion. I give a week's course-one hour each day, no credit-on library use. It's for undergraduates. Would you feel it beneath your dignity to sit in on such a course-with undergraduates, I mean? It starts in three weeks.† â€Å"You could give me private lessons.† Seldon felt a little surprised at the suggestive tone that had entered his voice. She did not miss it. â€Å"I dare say I could, but I think you'd be better off with more formal instruction. We'll be using the library, you understand, and at the end of the week you will be asked to locate information on particular items of historical interest. You will be competing with the other students all through and that will help you learn. Private tutoring will be far less efficient, I assure you. However, I understand the difficulty of competing with undergraduates. If you don't do as well as they, you may feel humiliated. You must remember, though, that they have already studied elementary history and you, perhaps, may not have.† â€Å"I haven't. No ‘may' about it. But I won't be afraid to compete and I won't mind any humiliation that may come along-if I manage to learn the tricks of the historical reference trade.† It was clear to Seldon that he was beginning to like this young woman and that he was gladly seizing on the chance to be educated by her. He was also aware of the fact that he had reached a turning point in his mind. He had promised Hummin to attempt to work out a practical psychohistory, but that had been a promise of the mind and not the emotions. Now he was determined to seize psychohistory by the throat if he had to-in order to make it practical. That, perhaps, was the influence of Dors Venabili. Or had Hummin counted on that? Hummin, Seldon decided, might well be a most formidable person. 19. Cleon I had finished dinner, which, unfortunately, had been a formal state affair. It meant he had to spend time talking to various officials-not one of whom he knew or recognized-in set phrases designed to give each one his stroke and so activate his loyalty to the crown. It also meant that his food reached him but lukewarm and had cooled still further before he could eat it. There had to be some way of avoiding that. Eat first, perhaps, on his own or with one or two close intimates with whom he could relax and then attend a formal dinner at which he could merely be served an imported pear. He loved pears. But would that offend the guests who would take the Emperor's refusal to eat with them as a studied insult. His wife, of course, was useless in this respect, for her presence would but further exacerbate his unhappiness. He had married her because she was a member of a powerful dissident family who could be expected to mute their dissidence as a result of the union, though Cleon devoutly hoped that she, at least, would not do so. He was perfectly content to have her live her own life in her own quarters except for the necessary efforts to initiate an heir, for, to tell the truth, he didn't like her. And now that an heir had come, he could ignore her completely. He chewed at one of a handful of nuts he had pocketed from the table on leaving and said, â€Å"Demerzel!† â€Å"Sire?† Demerzel always appeared at once when Cleon called. Whether he hovered constantly in earshot at the door or he drew close because the instinct of subservience somehow alerted him to a possible call in a few minutes, he did appear and that, Cleon thought idly, was the important thing. Of course, there were those times when Demerzel had to be away on Imperial business. Cleon always hated those absences. They made him uneasy. â€Å"What happened to that mathematician? I forget his name.† Demerzel, who surely knew the man the Emperor had in mind, but who perhaps wanted to study how much the Emperor remembered, said, â€Å"What mathematician is it that you have in mind, Sire?† Cleon waved an impatient hand. â€Å"The fortune-teller. The one who came to see me.† â€Å"The one we sent for?† â€Å"Well, sent for, then. He did come to see me. You were going to take care of the matter, as I recall. Have you?† Demerzel cleared his throat. â€Å"Sire, I have tried to.† â€Å"Ah! That means you have failed, doesn't it?† In a way, Cleon felt pleased. Demerzel was the only one of his Ministers who made no bones of failure. The others never admitted failure, and since failure was nevertheless common, it became difficult to correct. Perhaps Demerzel could afford to be more honest because he failed so rarely. If it weren't for Demerzel, Cleon thought sadly, he might never know what honesty sounded like. Perhaps no Emperor ever knew and perhaps that was one of the reasons that the Empire- He pulled his thoughts away and, suddenly nettled at the other's silence and wanting an admission, since he had just admired Demerzel's honesty in his mind, said sharply, â€Å"Well, you have failed, haven't you?† Demerzel did not flinch. â€Å"Sire, I have failed in part. I felt that to have him here on Trantor where things are-difficult might present us with problems. It was easy to consider that he might be more conveniently placed on his home planet. He was planning to return to that home planet the next day, but there was always the chance of complications-of his deciding to remain on Trantor-so I arranged to have two young alley men place him on his plane that very day.† â€Å"Do you know alley men, Demerzel?† Cleon was amused. â€Å"It is important, Sire, to be able to reach many kinds of people, for each type has its own variety of use-alley men not the least. As it happens, they did not succeed.† â€Å"And why was that?† â€Å"Oddly enough, Seldon was able to fight them off.† â€Å"The mathematician could fight?† â€Å"Apparently, mathematics and the martial arts are not necessarily mutually exclusive. I found out, not soon enough, that his world, Helicon, is noted for it-martial arts, not mathematics. The fact that I did not learn this earlier was indeed a failure, Sire, and I can only crave your pardon.† â€Å"But then, I suppose the mathematician left for his home planet the next day as he had planned.† â€Å"Unfortunately, the episode backfired. Taken aback by the event, he decided not to return to Helicon, but remained on Trantor. He may have been advised to this effect by a passerby who happened to be present on the occasion of the fight. That was another unlooked-for complication.† The Emperor Cleon frowned. â€Å"Then our mathematician-what is his name?† â€Å"Seldon, Sire. Hari Seldon.† â€Å"Then this Seldon is out of reach.† â€Å"In a sense, Sire. We have traced his movements and he is now at Streeling University. While there, he is untouchable.† The Emperor scowled and reddened slightly. â€Å"I am annoyed at that word-‘untouchable.' There should be nowhere in the Empire my hand cannot reach. Yet here, on my own world, you tell me someone can be untouchable. Insufferable!† â€Å"Your hand can reach to the University, Sire. You can send in your army and pluck out this Seldon at any moment you desire. To do so, however, is†¦ undesirable.† â€Å"Why don't you say ‘impractical,' Demerzel. You sound like the mathematician speaking of his fortune-telling. It is possible, but impractical. I am an Emperor who finds everything possible, but very little practical. Remember, Demerzel, if reaching Seldon is not practical, reaching you is entirely so.† Eto Demerzel let this last comment pass. The â€Å"man behind the throne† knew his importance to the Emperor, he had heard such threats before. He waited in silence while the Emperor glowered. Drumming his fingers against the arm of his chair, Cleon asked,†¦ Well then, what good is this mathematician to us if he is at Streeling University?† â€Å"It may perhaps be possible, Sire, to snatch use out of adversity. At the University, he may decide to work on his psychohistory.† â€Å"Even though he insists it's impractical?† â€Å"He may be wrong and he may find out that he is wrong. And if he finds out that he is wrong, we would find some way of getting him out of the University. It is even possible he would join us voluntarily under those circumstances.† The Emperor remained lost in thought for a while, then said, â€Å"And what if someone else plucks him out before we do?† â€Å"Who would want to do that, Sire?† asked Demerzel softy. â€Å"The Mayor of Wye, for one,† said Cleon, suddenly shouting. â€Å"He dreams still of taking over the Empire.† â€Å"Old age has drawn his fangs, Sire.† â€Å"Don't you believe it, Demerzel.† â€Å"And we have no reason for supposing he has any interest in Seldon or even knows of him, Sire.† â€Å"Come on, Demerzel. If we heard of the paper, so could Wye. If we see the possible importance of Seldon, so could Wye.† â€Å"If that should happen,† said Demerzel, â€Å"or even if there should be a reasonable chance of its happening, then we would be justified in taking strong measures.† â€Å"How strong?† Demerzel said cautiously, â€Å"It might be argued that rather than have Seldon in Wye's hands, we might prefer to have him in no one's hands. To have him cease to exist, Sire.† â€Å"To have him killed, you mean,† said Cleon. â€Å"If you wish to put it that way, Sire,† said Demerzel. 20. Hari Seldon sat back in his chair in the alcove that had been assigned to him through Dors Venabili's intervention. He was dissatisfied. As a matter of fact, although that was the expression he used in his mind, he knew that it was a gross underestimation of his feelings. He was not simply dissatisfied, he was furious-all the more so because he wasn't sure what it was he was furious about. Was it about the histories? The writers and compilers of histories? The worlds and people that made the histories? Whatever the target of his fury, it didn't really matter. What counted was that his notes were useless, his new knowledge was useless, everything was useless. He had been at the University now for almost six weeks. He had managed to find a computer outlet at the very start and with it had begun work-without instruction, but using the instincts he had developed over a number of years of mathematical labors. It had been slow and halting, but there was a certain pleasure in gradually dete rmining the routes by which he could get his questions answered. Then came the week of instruction with Dors, which had taught him several dozen shortcuts and had brought with it two sets of embarrassments. The first set included the sidelong glances he received from the undergraduates, who seemed contemptuously aware of his greater age and who were disposed to frown a bit at Dors's constant use of the honorific â€Å"Doctor† in addressing him. â€Å"I don't want them to think,† she said, â€Å"that you're some backward perpetual student taking remedial history.† â€Å"But surely you've established the point. Surely, a mere ‘Seldon' is sufficient now.† â€Å"No,† Dors said and smiled suddenly. â€Å"Besides, I like to call you ‘Dr. Seldon.' I like the way you look uncomfortable each time.† â€Å"You have a peculiar sense of sadistic humor.† â€Å"Would you deprive me?† For some reason, that made him laugh. Surely, the natural reaction would have been to deny sadism. Somehow he found it pleasant that she accepted the ball of conversation and fired it back. The thought led to a natural question. â€Å"Do you play tennis here at the University?† â€Å"We have courts, but I don't play.† â€Å"Good. I'll teach you. And when I do, I'll call you Professor Venabili.† â€Å"That's what you call me in class anyway.† â€Å"You'll be surprised how ridiculous it will sound on the tennis court.† â€Å"I may get to like it.† â€Å"In that case, I will try to find what else you might get to like.† â€Å"I see you have a peculiar sense of salacious humor.† She had put that ball in that spot deliberately and he said, â€Å"Would you deprive me?† She smiled and later did surprisingly well on the tennis court. â€Å"Are you sure you never played tennis?† he said, puffing, after one session. â€Å"Positive,† she said. The other set of embarrassments was more private. He learned the necessary techniques of historical research and then burned-in private-at his earlier attempts to make use of the computer's memory. It was simply an entirely different mind-set from that used in mathematics. It was equally logical, he supposed, since it could be used, consistently and without error, to move in whatever direction he wanted to, but it was a substantially different brand of logic from that to which he was accustomed. But with or without instructions, whether he stumbled or moved in swiftly, he simply didn't get any results. His annoyance made itself felt on the tennis court. Dors quickly reached the stage where it was no longer necessary to lob easy balls at her to give her time to judge direction and distance. That made it easy to forget that she was just a beginner and he expressed his anger in his swing, firing the ball back at her as though it were a laser beam made solid. She came trotting up to the net and said, â€Å"I can understand your wanting to kill me, since it must annoy you to watch me miss the shots so often. How is it, though, that you managed to miss my head by about three centimeters that time? I mean, you didn't even nick me. Can't you do better than that?† Seldon, horrified, tried to explain, but only managed to sound incoherent. She said, â€Å"Look. I'm not going to face any other returns of yours today, so why don't we shower and then get together for some tea and whatever and you can tell me just what you were trying to kill. If it wasn't my poor head and if you don't get the real victim off your chest, you'll be entirely too dangerous on the other side of the net for me to want to serve as a target.† Over tea he said, â€Å"Dors, I've scanned history after history; just scanned, browsed. I haven't had time for deep study yet. Even so, it's become obvious. All the book-films concentrate on the same few events.† â€Å"Crucial ones. History-making ones.† â€Å"That's just an excuse. They're copying each other. There are twenty-five million worlds out there and there's significant mention of perhaps twenty-five.† Dors said, â€Å"You're reading general Galactic histories only. Look up the special histories of some of the minor worlds. On every world, however small, the children are taught local histories before they ever find out there's a great big Galaxy outside. Don't you yourself know more about Helicon, right now, than you know about the rise of Trantor or of the Great Interstellar War?† â€Å"That sort of knowledge is limited too,† said Seldon gloomily. â€Å"I know Heliconian geography and the stories of its settlement and of the malfeasance and misfeasance of the planet Jennisek-that's our traditional enemy, though our teachers carefully told us that we ought to say ‘traditional rival.' But I never learned anything about the contributions of Helicon to general Galactic history.† â€Å"Maybe there weren't any.† â€Å"Don't be silly. Of course there were. There may not have been great, huge space battles involving Helicon or crucial rebellions or peace treaties. There may not have been some Imperial competitor making his base on Helicon. But there must have been subtle influences. Surely, nothing can happen anywhere without affecting everywhere else. Yet there's nothing I can find to help me. See here, Dors. In mathematics, all can be found in the computer; everything we know or have found out in twenty thousand years. In history, that's not so. Historians pick and choose and every one of them picks and chooses the same thing.† â€Å"But, Hari,† said Dors, â€Å"mathematics is an orderly thing of human invention. One thing follows from another. There are definitions and axioms, all of which are known. It is†¦ it is†¦ all one piece. History is different. It is the unconscious working out of the deeds and thoughts of quadrillions of human beings. Historians must pick and choose.† â€Å"Exactly,† said Seldon, â€Å"but I must know all of history if I am to work out the laws of psychohistory.† â€Å"In that case, you won't ever formulate the laws of psychohistory.† That was yesterday. Now Seldon sat in his chair in his alcove, having spent another day of utter failure, and he could hear Dors's voice saying, â€Å"In that case, you won't ever formulate the laws of psychohistory.† It was what he had thought to begin with and if it hadn't been for Hummin's conviction to the contrary and his odd ability to fire Seldon with his own blaze of conviction, Seldon would have continued to think so. And yet neither could he quite let go. Might there not be some way out? He couldn't think of any.

Fairy Tales Final Exam Short Answers Essay

1. The Idea of Naming Unique names and titles contribute greatly to the success of fairytales. In classic fairytales, readers identify the protagonist as an icon, rather than a requisite to push the plot. Timeless â€Å"appellations,† such as â€Å"Cinderella,† â€Å"The Little Red Ridinghood,† â€Å"Snow White,† â€Å"Blue Beard,† etc. inheritably connect to public impression. Nowadays, every name has a story behind it, and the name itself is a story. In general, classical fairytale names feature descriptive adjectives, especially colors, which directly refer to the protagonist’s physical characteristic. As a result, names sound both natural and indigenous that readers can easily remember. Thanks to the widely recognized popularity, these vivid appellations now become universal symbols. For example, â€Å"Snow White† denotes unsurpassable beauty rather than a beautiful child â€Å"as white as snow.† In addition, â€Å"Cinderella† literally addresses to a maiden who works all day long in â€Å"cinder,† while nowadays the appellation represents any girl who successfully achieves materialistic progress through marriage, such as Princess Kate. Furthermore, these lively descriptive dictions greatly impact fashion and entertainment industry nowadays; Recently, Christian Louboutin, the famous shoe designer known for his trademark red soles, announced his latest challenge: to design a pair of modern glass slippers since woman has been longing for centuries to find a perfect fit. Names in classic fairytales serve more than a reference to the character, but an idol to carry the timeless stories forward. However, compared to the straightforward names in classics, modern fairytale names feature simplicity and artificial symbolization. For more recent days, fairytale writers tend to simplify the names but focus more on the storylines themselves. Hans Christian Anderson, the celebrated fairytales authors in 19th century, emphasizes on the character’s identity such as â€Å"the little Mermaid, † â€Å"The little match girl,† â€Å"Princess on the peas† instead of detailed physical descriptions. Another 19th century writer, Oscar Wilde also adopts straightforward appellations such as â€Å"the Giant,† â€Å"The happy prince† that inevitably weaken the visual impact on readers. However, the simplicity contributes greatly to the story telling itself, since readers now pay more attention to the plot. People memorize the happy princess as a selfless donor rather than a beautiful, grandeur statue. Also, the â€Å"little match girl† from Anderson wins worldwide sympathy not for the fact she sells matches, but for the suffering. Thus, during the 19th to 20th century, fairytale names move toward simplification and frankness. Furthermore, in contemporary works such as Judy Budnitz’s Flying Leap and Donald Barthelme’s Snow White, writers either artificially embody names with symbolization, or utilize names as agent numbers. For example, in Judy Budnitz’s Hershel, readers intuitively connect the protagonist Hershel, who sells baby as a product through baking them in the oven, to the Hershey chocolate factory. What would happen if technologies allow human to reproduce as baking chocolates? On the other hand, names do not necessarily convey any information of the character. Barthelme assigns random names to the seven dwarfs such as Kevin, Edward, Huburt, etc. in Snow White that carry few significant annotations but effectively smooth the story telling. Thus, in modern days, authors add an artificial flavor to fairytale names that either designed for clarification purposes or for intentional symbolization. As a result, the impact of names gradually deceases from classics to modern works, since modern writers tend to focus more on the ideas rather than to establish a universally recognized icon. 5. Fairytale Family Tree Although most fairytales initially contain violence, cruelty, and sexual descriptions, modern readers intuitively associate fairytales with a perfect heaven-like world. Why? Throughout the past three hundred years, writers, producers, and scholars gradually collaborate to not only remove the dark side of fairytales, but also invest heavily on comic elements to win popularity. As a result, from traditional Perrault to innovative Shrek, modern fairytale reinterpretations celebrate laughter, humor, and optimism to a dramatic extent. As the first person to mark fairytales as a new genre, Perrault maintains most of the violence, sexual inference, and tragic endings in Tale of Mother Goose. However, he attempts to draw a moral lesson from each story, especially those with a sad ending. As a result, these comments provide valuable relief to readers. For example, in Little Red Ridinghood, Perrault warns children against the danger of â€Å"talking to strangers.† Thanks to the warning, children would fear less of the unpredictable death− swallowed by a wolf, but behave cautiously in real life. Obviously, although pessimistic elements inevitably accompany some fairytales, storytellers endeavor to restore the belief of ultimate truth, happiness, and beauty in the end. Following Perrault’s trend, Grimm Brothers deliberately minimizes the number of gloomy fairytale endings. Despite the remaining violence, almost all the princes and princesses symbolically â€Å"live happily ever after.† Since Grimm brothers target children as the major readers, they offer immediate satisfaction to intensify the optimism−originated from Perrault’s moral lessons. As a result, in Grimm Brother’s version, little red ridinghood successfully rescues her grandma as well as defeats the wolf through the hunter’s assistance. Along with Grimm Brother’s efforts, modern movie productions, especially the Walt Disney productions, further strengthen the delightful side in fairytales that elevate the genre as a symbolization of the ideal world. Thanks to the overwhelming influence of Disney productions, fairytales win the favor of children and parents from all walks of life. In addition to the ultimate happy ending, Disney eliminates most of the bloody scenes in movies. For example, in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the evil queen falls off the cliff instead of dancing until death on iron slippers. Thanks to Disney’s emphasis on the bright side, most antagonists receive reduced punishments. Moreover, Disney introduces music, funny appellations, and humanlike animal figures to promote the comical atmosphere. For the first time, producers assign distinguishable names, such as â€Å"Sleepy,† â€Å"Happy,† to the seven dwarfs in the Snow White movie. As a result, Disney movies root deeply in children’s hearts with a perfectly moral kingdom. Furthermore, modern artists seek innovations to alleviate the struggle on the protagonists’ quest in Disney movies; indeed, every moment should bring laughter instead of nervousness to the audience. In addition to the removal of violence, films and productions such as Shrek and Into the woods totally renovate the storyline. No longer serving as the puppets under writers’ manipulation, fairytale characters start to reflect, comment, and even tease each other in a good nature. Undeniably, worldwide audience celebrates the humor when the green ogre Shrek awkwardly kisses the green princess Fiona, proven by Shrek’s commercial and critical success. Based on Disney’s illusion of a perfect world, modern producers further reduce the struggles but laugh at the hardship into lighthearted humor. Overall, through Perrault, Grimm Brother, Disney and contemporary producers’ efforts, worldwide children and parents regard fairytales as the ultimate relief of the real world. Gradually moving away from the dark sides, fairytale nowadays celebrate love, trust, truth and most importantly, humor. 6. Dorian Gray and Budnitz’s stories, fairytales or not? According to Bruno Bettelheim’s definition, Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde hardly meets the qualifications of fairytales. For Bettelheim, fairytale must provide security to readers by directly addressing to the â€Å"existential anxieties and dilemmas,† while Dorian Gray fails to offer such assurance. Instead, Wilde industriously portrays the dark side of human psyche. Also, Bettelheim regards fairytale as a reflection of growth and maturity. However, Dorian Gray obviously never grows up but dies of self-obsession. In fact, Oscar Wilde focuses on Dorian’s struggle to fight against the physical aging process rather than addresses to spiritual awakening. Although Dorian sacrifices his soul in exchange of forever youth and beauty, the eventual punishment fails to show any lessons of struggle. Dorian not only fails to achieve salvation through good deeds, but also shows no regrets of the evil trade. Thus, Bettelheim would very likely dismiss the proposal of categorizing Dorian Gray as a fairytale. In addition, Bettelheim’s theory states that fairytales respond to â€Å"the desperate feelings of loneliness and isolation† rather than narcissism or hedonism. As an aristocrat, Dorian Gray enjoys both materialistic affluence and spiritual fulfillment. Physical beauty effortlessly wins Dorian the love from the upper class under the setting of Victorian London. Especially the appreciation from Lord Henry greatly satisfies Dorian’s self-pride. Thus, Dorian suffers from neither loneliness nor isolation as Bettelheim highlighted but self-obsession. Moreover, Dorian lacks adventures into the world since he mostly struggles against internal human greed, violating Bettelheim’s belief of â€Å"only by going out into the cord†¦can find himself†¦and others live happily ever after.† Furthermore, Dorian Gray’s interaction with the outside world only intensifies his self-obsession, as the crowd incessantly celebrating his beauty. As a result, Dorian Gray only portrays the dark side of human psyche without suggesting any lessons about maturity and growth. On the other hand, Budnitz’s short stories satisfy partially Bettelheim’s expectation of fairytales, but still fail to generate a valuable lesson for adult to learn and grow. For example, Barren directly addresses to the insecurity of adult world: what would happen if human suddenly lose the capability to raise children? However, the story itself fails to provide assurance and relief. In Barren, despite countless endeavor to make babies, humans achieve no progress. The protagonists â€Å"go out into the world† for solutions, for example adopting babies in China and Indian and orphans and sex. However, they return with disappointment and panic. Babies eventually re-appear not because of human’s efforts, but of the invisible hands of fate. Under Bettelheim’s theory, fairytales suppose to show children that â€Å"if one does not shy away from severe difficulties†¦but steadfastly meets unexpected†¦masters all obstacles and emerges victorious†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Unfortunately, Budnitz not only rings the alert of the danger of generation gaps, but also eliminates the optimism. Compared to fate, human efforts appear so fragile that even the most fundamental ability of reproduction faces the danger. As a result, at the end of the story, readers close the book with unprecedented fear rather than relief. Furthermore, even happy endings do not fully represent fairytales under Bettelheim’s theory. Although stories such as Direction provide a happy reunion, the story itself fails to articulate how to achieve such success. Even old magic provides the readers something to believe, instead of the absolute randomness. Compared to traditional fairytales, Budnitz’s stories leave the readers with too many concerns shadowing the satisfaction. Obviously, Bettelheim would not agree with such incompleteness. Instead, he would probably classify Budnitz’s stories as modern fables since they do teach a meaningful lesson to the readers. 7. Ownership of fairytales As fairytales evolve throughout history, every generation has a unique interpretation. Obviously, Disney productions dominate the modern fairytale interpretation, for children recognize the little mermaid as â€Å"Ariel† and Beauty as â€Å"Bella.† Understandably, critics such as Jack Zipes express blatant jealousy towards Disney’s success by charging that the animation giant â€Å"has attempted to fix them in our minds.† However, in the modern era, Disney movies achieve unprecedented popularity only because they capture the value of modern audience most successfully. Through animations, pillow books, toys, and Disneyland, Disney creates a universal fairytale kingdom with followers in every age group. Although Disney heavily emphasizes on American dream such as affluence, humor, endeavor, and perseverance, the cartoons cross the culture boundary and win recognition all over the world. After all, if Disney does own a monopoly, it is the readers themselves that voluntarily allow Disney characters to root in their minds as fairytale stereotypes. In addition, Disney domination not necessarily sentences the death of other fairytale interpretations. Beyond the Disney stereotypes, Anne Sexton’s Transformation and Bruno Bettelheim’s The Enchant of Fairytales revolutionize my impression of fairytales in the semester, especially the brilliant comments by Sexton. As a huge Disney lover, I never doubt the beauty of fairytale imaginaries. However, lines such as â€Å"The two sisters came to curry favor/and the white dove pecked their eyes out/two hollow spots were left/like soup spoons/† and â€Å"like two dolls in a museum case/never bothered by diapers or dust† in Cinderella add an intrinsic flavor of the real world imperfection into the Disney kingdom. Too many marriages end up with arguments. Maybe the relationship was as perfect as Cinderella and the Prince’s, but what daily arguments actually ruin the sweetness? Or perfect marriage only lasts in the museum case? Although readers frequently seek an idealistic escape in fairytales, such sarcastic comments actually provide an insightful reflection over the real life conflicts. Compared to Sexton’s abrupt commentary, Bettelheim explores the symbolic interpretation of fairytales under logics. In the past, fairytales bring nothing more than happiness, spiritual fulfillment, and moments of relaxation. However, Bettelheim’s The Enchant of Fairytales connects the most straightforward stories to the sophistication of literature. Every character symbolizes a group of children; every adventure teaches a lesson; every journey leads to growth. Most importantly, through Bettelheim’s psychological analysis, the seemingly artificial explanation indeed collaborates into a well-developed theory. For example, Bettelheim interprets the deprivation of the cow as a turning point for Jack to â€Å"encounter the world† and â€Å"do it by himself.† Also, the symbolization â€Å"gold† as pure wealth, â€Å"golden eggs† as the importance of producing wealth, and â€Å"golden harp† as â€Å"beauty,† or â€Å"higher things in life† totally fascinate me. As a result, Bettelheim’s logical analysis overrides my impression from Disney; for the first time that I realize that fairytales can suggest more than dream, but the complete process of growth and maturity as well. In addition, Bettelheim’s theory about the quest into the woods in pursuit of success arouses my personal memory. As an international student, studying abroad itself simulates the adventure. Maybe I am the Hansel or Gretal who fights for survival? Or maybe I am the Jack who climbs into the sky for wealth, recognition, and maturity? Fairytales serve as a reminder of the dream. Undeniably, audience cherishes Disney stories for the vivid visualization of fairytale characters, the celebration of success, or a moment of relief. However, insightful comments in Sexton and Bettelheim also provide an alternative view: rather than stories for entertainment, fairytales open an encyclopedia that guides the path to maturity.

Principles of Financial Management Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Principles of Financial Management - Assignment Example Funds for business operations can be obtained from two sources, these include: internal as well as external sources. Internal sources of finance refer to funds raised from competencies and resources within the organization, for example: sale of fixed assets and money saved from the total earnings. External sources of finances refer to those sources that are located out of the business vicinity, in the environment in which the business is operating (Bendrey, 2001, p.16). For example: sale of shares to other investors, bank loans, overdraft and investments from the investment world. Several benefits are associated with both kinds of financing methods. External financing sources such as sale of shares is one of the most fastest method for raising capital and gaining huge amount of money in a very short period of time. Money raised through sale of shares does not need to be returned and no interest needs to be paid. On the other hand, funds raised through internal sources allow the organization to continue controlling the organization and is not associated with payment of interest. If loan is obtained from banks, organizations can gain access to heavy amount of funds which can be repaid over a long period of time and company does not losses its say on the operations. These sources of finance have disadvantages associated with them, in case of sale of shares, owners of the company loose control and shareholders even participate in decision making process (Cottrell, 1980, p.248). If an organization borrows loan from a bank, it has a duty to not only repay the loan amount, it even has to pay the interest levied on the loan amount which might become difficult to repay if the organization fails to generate revenue. The money raised through internal sources are quite limited are required for day to day financing purposes. If money raised through internal sources is used up, the company might suffer from

Bio u4gp Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Bio u4gp - Essay Example Also contained in the digestive tract is a layer of muscle that helps in the process of breaking down food (The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, 2008). In addition to the aforementioned hollow digestive organs, there are also solid organs that produce or store digestive juices to aid in the digestive process. These solid organs are the liver, pancreas, and gallbladder. The liver and pancreas produce digestive fluids that travel to the intestine via ducts. The liver’s digestive juices are stored in the gallbladder until the intestine needs them. Also, there are parts in the nervous and circulatory system that play serious parts in the overall digestive process (The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, 2008). Also according to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, â€Å"When you eat foods—such as bread, meat, and vegetables—they are not in a form that the body can use as nourishment. Food and drink must be changed into smaller molecules of nutrients before they can be absorbed into the blood and carried to cells throughout the body. Digestion is the process by which food and drink are broken down into their smallest parts so the body can use them to build and nourish cells and to provide energy.† According to Merck (2008, pg. 1), â€Å"Although an organ has a specific function, organs also function as part of a group, called an organ system. The organ system is the organizational unit by which medicine is studied, diseases are generally categorized, and treatments are planned.† The organ systems within the human body include the cardiovascular, respiratory, nervous, skin, musculoskeletal, blood, digestive, endocrine, urinary, male reproductive, and female reproductive systems. Organ systems do not function by themselves. Instead, they work with each other to accomplish tasks that are needed for the human organism to

Describe a character in fiction, a historical figure, or a creative Essay - 1

Describe a character in fiction, a historical figure, or a creative work (as in art, music, science, etc.) that has had an influence on you, and explain that influence - Essay Example Lincoln learned through his experiences while working on a farm, splitting rails for fences and store-keeping at Illinois. He partook as a captain in the Black Hawk war which was fought between the Indian tribes and native white settlers during their westward expansion. His political career began with his appointment to the Illinois state legislature and later gaining an admission to the Illinois bar. This was soon followed by his marriage to Mary Todd and his subsequent election to the U.S. House of Representatives. They had four boys but tragedy struck and three of their children succumbed to illnesses and one son worked as an attorney and served as the President of Pullman Company. Despite many success as an attorney and several personal sorrows, Lincoln rose again with sheer determination to be nominated as the President of the Republican party in 1860 and went on to become President in the year 1861. His strong belief in equality among the citizens and the need for a successful democratic union assured him the presidency. This was soon followed by the civil war that attacked the Constitution of the United States. The northern and southern regions of the country were divided on the issue of slavery and as a result many southern states which supported slavery pulled out from the Union and formed a separate Confederate of States. However, President Lincoln assured the people that his primary responsibility was to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States and that this would be the war’s primary motive. He undertook every possible measure at war time to preserve the Union and the victories gained in the battles provided the impetus for issuing the emancipation proclamation through which Lincoln freed all the slaves who sustained the war of the confederate. At the end of the war, Lincoln delivered his famous Gettysburg address wherein he upheld that the war paved the way for a new birth of freedom

The book FREEDOM by Johnatan Franzen. Journalist critics of the book Assignment

The book FREEDOM by Johnatan Franzen. Journalist critics of the book - Assignment Example d arranges marriages of contemporary time, it can be said that as an author he has developed his skills and deviated his way of writing technically and topically. This owing to the reason that he is able to captivate in comic and tragic hue at the same plane the provocations and the pressures the concept of liberty brings forth, the thrilling days of teenage immersed in sexual interests culminating almost into lust, the most provoking social issue of American society pertaining to mid-life crisis, collapsing of the wages in the suburb areas and the pang of staying under the reign of a heavy weight empire all come under one umbrella within the plot of the novel â€Å"Freedom†. Like most of the common topics of American literature, American dream does not find a very potent place within the plot of the novel, but the tinge of the issue can be traced within a microcosm of middle class American society. A deep delineation to the plot of the novel and close introspection to the motif launches the readers into a plethora of thought process where it is very clear that the novel captures a span of time frame as its background with some deliberate intentions. The time frame against which the plot of the novel, â€Å"Freedom† is set initiates during the last decades of the twentieth century and ends at the beginning of Obama administration. The novel captivates a wide time frame; therefore the socio-political and socio-economic ups and downs are tracked in the novel from a very close counter. The contour of American society is very evident through the book as it displays a volley of characters almost in a Dickensian way, â€Å"In the earliest years, when you could still drive a Volvo 240 without feeling self-conscious, the collective task in Ramsey Hills was to relearn certain life skills that your own parents had fled to the suburbs specifically to unlearn† (Franzen 4). The language is lucid and the syntax is clear. As regards to the anatomy of the book, then there are small

Phase response curves to light and to melatonin Essay

Phase response curves to light and to melatonin - Essay Example In human light PRC (Figure 1), the y-axis of the PRC shows the direction and relative magnitude of the phase shift in hours induced by light exposure (solid line). Circadian Time Zero (CT0) corresponds to 11:00 am and CT22-CT18 is the duration for day time activity. The black bar, which indicates the time period between 12:00 midnight – 8:00am, along x-axis represents the duration for sleeping. Bright light treatment causes the phase-delay of circadian phase, which is represented by the area from CT10 to CT18. During this period, bright light treatment causes later onset of sleeping/awakening cycle. As time progresses from CT10, stronger effect on phase-delay is observed. At CT18, this phase-delay effect is changed dramatically to phase-advancing effect. The peak phase-advancing effect coincides with sunrise. From CT18 to CT3, bright light treatment induces phase-advancing effect, causing earlier onset of sleeping / awakening cycle. This effect gradually decreases from CT19 to CT3. As noted in the graph, little or no effect is observed when bright light treatment is applied from CT14 to CT20, in which this time period corresponds to 2:00pm to 8:00pm. The intensity of the light used in bright light treatment can have direct effect on the magnitude of the phase advancement or delay. ... After this time point, this effect decreases to the lowest point to CT12. It should be noted that during this time period, bright light treatment has no phase-shifting effect on circadian rhythm. From CT18 to CT0, melatonin administration induces a phase-delay effect on circadian rhythm, however, this effect is relatively small when compared with the phase advancing effect induced by bright light treatment. From 2 hours before the onset of sleeping (CT12) onwards until time of sunrise (CT18), administration of melatonin does not exert any effect on circadian rhythm. This time duration coincides with phase delaying effect of bright light treatment. b. Using this knowledge of the phase response curves to light and to melatonin, design a protocol to alleviate the effects of jet lag when travelling from London Singapore (8 time zones eastward) The flights for travelling from London to Singapore are available both in the morning and at night. The local time in Singapore is ahead of London by 8 hours (8 time zones eastward). Assuming there are two flights travelling from London to Singapore, one flight has the depart time at 11:00 am (London local time) and arrive in Singapore at 7:00 am (Singapore local time, one day ahead); the other flight departs at 22:00 pm (London local time) and arrives at 18:00 pm (Singapore local time, one day ahead). The total duration of the flight is approximately 13 hours. The circadian rhythm may be entrained by advance or delay the sleep/awake cycle and both intake of melatonin at about 4 hours before to its natural peak in the circadian cycle or bright light treatment may induce an advance response (3). The following protocol is devised from

Reflections on World's Leadership Research Paper - 3

Reflections on World's Leadership - Research Paper Example Prince Alwaleed bin Talal best known as one of the world's value investor. â€Å"Alwaleed’s Kingdom Holding Company, where he posses at least 95%, trading on the famous Saudi stock exchange, in addition he owns stakes in several hotel management companies the famous four Seasons Hotels & Resorts, moreover he has a stake in Savoy Hotel in London† (Lazaridis, 211). â€Å"Kingdom investment has billions of dollars of the U.S. and international equities, as well as shares of News Corp and Citigroup† (Myers, 21). â€Å"During the year 2012 he and the Kingdom investment purchased an approximated 3% stake in the social media Twitter through the secondary market for whopping $400 million. The same year February, Kingdom investments invested around $136 million in fast growing Chinese e-commerce company. In addition to other known investment he Prince posses far-reaching real estate plus other assets exterior of the Kingdom Holding† (Khan, 65). He is perhaps well i dentified internationally as the controlling shareholder of the Kingdom Holdings Company and the chairman, of the world’s most significant investment company. All through Middle East he is renowned as the proprietor of the Rotana, which is the Arab world’s largest leisure company. ... ifically directed towards supporting global cultural understanding, community development projects in Saudi Arabia, all around the world and Lebanon, women empowerment and disaster recovery. Key leadership qualities which drives me into considering him as a good leader in business According to (McGreevy, 209), â€Å"An Interview with HRH, Prince says that A successful businessman has to have an ultimate plan and a well stated objectives, in conjunction to a well defined mission statement†, he goes ahead to say that the leader has to have an audacity to make decisions which most of the time might not be emulated by others in the short run. He goes ahead to say that as a leader and sometimes he made decisions which are may not be appreciated by both young managers and the community. â€Å"Nevertheless, he just has to remain a one-man show. He established these traits at KHC sometimes back† (Myers, 21). Key Leadership Traits That Makes Prince To Stand Out As A Good Leader Has a clear vision; old adage "either stand something, or you might fall for everything." ( Sweeny, 79). Prince practically stood firm when it come to the implementation of the company's policies and procedures. More over as a leader, he has a clear way to communicate his vision and the company’s vision to the people such as his employees. Have passion in his word. He realized that his employees wanted passion; and that his employee would even go to the ends of earth as a result of it, die and live. He also realized that his passion inspired others to conquer new and dangerous challenges. â€Å"Great decision maker. He clearly understood his process for decision making. Take for example he talked to his management team† (McGreevy, 209). In addition to conducting a cost analysis. â€Å"He went ahead to even

US-China Trade History 1980-Present Essay Example for Free

US-China Trade History 1980-Present Essay US -China relations became a breakthrough in history in 1979 when both countries came together and diplomatically ensued a positive political and economic future. A small but well beginning started in 1980 when U. S. -China trade was $2 billion, which was the summation of both imports and exports. At the time China was the United States’ 48th largest source of imports and 23rd largest export market. U. S. -China trade in the past 30 years has dramatically increased ever since. U. S. -China trade in 1981 rose from $5 billion to $503 billion in 2011. As of now China is the United States’ second biggest trading partner (behind Canada), third biggest export market (Canada being first, Mexico second), and number one source of imports. In 1985 the U. S. trade deficit with China was $0 billion with U. S. imports equaling U. S. exports to China. Being that U. S. imports from China are higher and are now increasing more than U. S. exports to China; the U. S. merchandise trade deficit has risen from $10 billion in 1990 to $296 billion in 2011. Today China currently now owns the title of having the single highest U. S. rade balance deficit (with the combined world economy leading ahead China). With OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) being second the highest, and the European Union with its 27 members being third; their combined U. S. trade balance deficit being $237. 8 billion is still no match for China’s nearly $296 billion in today’s economy. China is trading more than ever and has become a big player in the global export market. At their peak of economic growth, cheap labor is their primitive and the key to what makes their exports so attractive to foreigners. The United States, once the world’s leader of exports is now the third largest global exporter following behind Germany and China. The United States and other advanced countries are now struggling to compete with China and those other developing nations who utilize their low wage comparative advantage in manufacturing. From what looked like an unpredictable beginning for the United States and China now appears to be an economic complexity for both parties and the global economy. Beneficiaries of U. S. -China Current and Potential Trade As China’s rapidly economy grows, the standard of living of its people dealistically will too. With a determined future full of growth China is aiming to modernize and innovate itself as an advanced nation. According to the Boeing Corporation â€Å"Boeing Corporation predicts that over the next 20 years (2011-2030), China will buy 5,000 new commercial airplanes valued at $600 billion and will be Boeing’s largest commercial airplane customer outside the United States†. Besides purchasing American prestige airlines, China will also have to improve its infrastructure. In the process it must buy raw materials from the global market in order to build new roads, buildings, and etc. New homes will be built along with suburban neighborhoods filled with middle income citizens. Their demand for home appliances and personal entities will increase private consumption among the population. According to a report by the Boston Consulting Group, â€Å"in 2009, China had 148 million middle class and affluent consumers, defined as those whose annual household income was 60,000 RMB ($9,160) or higher, and that level is projected to rise to 415 million by 2020†. The rise in China’s middle class will be a targeted market for American companies thus creating future export opportunities for the United States. As stated on the GM website â€Å"For the first time in its history, General Motors (GM) in 2010 sold more cars and trucks in China (at 2. 35 million units) than it did in the United States (2. 21 million units). In 2011, GM sold 2. 55 million vehicles in China (up 8. 3% over 2010 levels) versus 2. 50 million in the United States. GM in China currently has 11 joint ventures and two wholly owned foreign enterprises and employs more than 35,000 workers†. China’s growing economy and large population of over 1. 3 billion people make it a potentially enormous market for the world and most importantly the United States. China is currently a $200 billion market for U. S. firms making it a crucial part of the U. S. economy. The top Chinese exports to the United States in 2011 were communications equipment, computer equipment, clothes, semiconductors, and manufactured goods such as toys and games. American businesses that receive Chinese imports thrive and maximize their profits because of their ability produce their product cheap at the expense of low wage labor in China. This allows them to lower costs of their product giving them a more competitive edge in the global market. Not only has trade with China over recent history benefitted entrepreneurs but American consumers as well. Wal-Mart for example sells mostly Chinese made products at a very low price. American consumers benefit greatly because of this and it allows them to buy more for less. As a result, United States trade with China has benefitted both economies throughout the course of their trading history. According to some economist, if there are economic reforms in China the United States will soon benefit from an upcoming available Chinese middle class market. World Trade Organization After 15 years of diplomatic issues that started in 1986, China in 2001 finally became a member of the international trading system. Once a member, China agreed to: a) Reduce the average tariff for industrial goods from 17% to 8. 9% and average tariffs on U. S. priority agricultural products from 31% to 14%. b) Regularly address the WTO of government subsidies it provides. c) In three years’ time after becoming a member it must give full trade and distribution rights to foreign enterprises. ) Provide equal treatment to all WTO members by treating foreign firms in China the same as to those domestic firms in China. e) End discriminatory trade policies against foreign invested firms in China regarding domestic content rules and technology transfer requirements f) Implement the WTO’s Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) Agreement upon entry g) Fully open its banking system to foreign financial institutions by the end of 200 6 and h) Allow joint ventures in insurance and telecommunication. In all, the intention for Chinas’ entry was good, giving hope that it would become a more dependable and secure trading partner for the United States. U. S. trade officials argue that in the first years after its entry to the WTO, China made steady progress in adopting economic reforms that promoted its conversion toward a market economy by increasing openness to trade. Nevertheless in 2006 China’s improvement towards a free market appeared to have digressed. U. S. government and business officials realized that by 2008 China began implementing a more restrictive trade strategy among its regime. Signs of China’s failure to implement WTO agreements were noticed as China began: a) discriminating against foreign firms, while continuing to promote Chinese industrial policies and national standards b) failing to meet restrictions regarding trading and distribution rights and c) discriminating on which imports to enforce health and safety rules. In May of 2012 President Obama proposed to create a new trade enforcement unit that will facilitate unfair trading practices in major exporting countries such as China. This may eventually give rise to the amount of dispute settlement cases in the WTO against China. Conclusion The emergence of developing nations as well as some advanced nations created a window of opportunity for United States’ exports. The world’s global capitalism movement lead by the United States has helped those who wanted an American style of living by obtaining it through China’s contirbution to manufacture American goods at a low cost. The growth and expansion of American multinational corporations is due to outsourcing U.  S. manufacturing jobs to China. This has benefitted the Chinese rural population by the creation of jobs in poverty stricken areas. Even though the jobs created are low waged and offer little to no worker safety, one must realize opportunity for a better life for those who are willing to work in China. Over the course of 30 years of U. S –China trade, Americans have gained more than they have lost as a result of China’s low cost exports (whether some Americans they like to admit it or not). Analysts around the world are now providing evidence that China’s middle class is growing as rapid as its economy. With U. S. -China trade expected to grow in the next 20 years, many economic reforms in China must first be dealt with in order to secure the stability of China’s demanding middle class. China is now being seen as a potentially huge U. S. export destination and because of this Americans will soon benefit from the creation of the millions of capital based jobs in the United States in the upcoming future.

Consequences Of The First World War History Essay

Consequences Of The First World War History Essay

Development of the Understanding of Dyslexia

Development of the Understanding of Dyslexia Introduction The following three chapters offer not only an introduction, but an in depth analysis of the current state of the study of Dyslexia today. Much of the information evaluated for this study was based on the preeminent minds in the study of learning disabilities today. It is the responsibility of a curious society to determine the causal and symptomological relationships for a particular disorder prior to its diagnosis. Dyslexia presents a unique challenge to this social responsibility because of a uniquely manifested heterogeneity which is pervasive in many forms. Further research is decidedly required in order to isolate the underlying cause of such an affliction, yet with current medical data and a limited number of scientific studies, this feat remains next to impossible, even one hundred years after its initial recognition. Chapter One When his trembling hand gripped tightly to the pencil and the words began to flow freely, their meaning rushed through his mind; minute synaptic reactions converted thought into impulse and further into written word. When read, however, by a stupefied instructor, it was the letter reversal, in addition to poor, untrained handwriting which brought cause for alarm. Visits with a Neurologist, discussions with a Psychiatrist, all led towards an unfortunate diagnosis: Dyslexia. Introduction The following chapter is designed to offer an in depth history and background for one of the most misunderstood and misdiagnosed affectations in history: Dyslexia. It is only through thorough comprehension of this disorder and the potential affects on youth and adults alike that proper diagnosis and treatment will be initiated. Defining a Theory When theory becomes practice and eventually is predominately a diagnosis, it stands to reason that a clear and effective definition of that theory would aid in discussion with patients and training for educators. However, when a disability necessitates the scientific consensus of hundreds of doctors dealing with similar, yet uniquely defined cases, the theory will flounder, pinned in a net of conflicting case studies and rhetoric. Webster’s Dictionary defines Dyslexia as â€Å"a variable often familial learning disability involving difficulties in acquiring and processing language that is typically manifested by a lack of proficiency in reading, spelling, and writing.†[1] This definition is not particularly enlightening, nor does it further our comprehension of what symptoms or solutions may be present for such a disorder. Pop culture would have us believe that all dyslexics read words backwards, are inwardly frustrated individuals, and are oftentimes lazy in study while uniquely talented in another aspect of life. Yet, with the ambiguous definitions which have punctuated the study of this disorder, it can easily be seen how education in this area is lacking, particularly in terms of diagnosis. â€Å"The term dyslexia comes from the Greek root â€Å"dys† (trouble) and â€Å"lexia† (word).[2] It is easily seen how such a generic definition can lead to great scientific debate, not only in study, but in treatment as well. There is no singular treatment for dyslexia, in fact, this is a lifetime disability where teaching awareness in addition to atypical forms of learning becomes paramount in the normal functionability of the patient. Most common in modern definitions of Dyslexia is that it is a phonological disorder predicated by neurological dysfunction contributing to poor reading, writing, and oftentimes learning abilities. This theory, however, becomes problematic as a variety of scientific studies seek to minimize the extent that cerebral malfunction influences phonological impairment. Through simplification of the diagnosis procedure, tests such as IQ testing become the benchmark for identification dyslexics as opposed to poor readers. It is important to note that dyslexics do not have an intelligence deficiency. Their disorder is directly linked to improper phonological interpretation, and oftentimes, unique strengths arise from within this impairment. The following sections will further explore the preeminent theories behind dyslexia, in addition to extrapolating linked generic theories into cohesive formats by which further understanding of dyslexia will be simplified. Dyslexia: Historical perspective The first case study which endeavored to define dyslexia was recorded in 1872 by a physician, R. Berlin of Stuttgart, Germany. The initial cases of dyslexia were predominately adults who had lost the ability to read, write, or comprehend language in some cases due to severe trauma or head wounds. Early definitions of this disorder invoked use of a more common term aphasic, or a loss of the ability to use or comprehend words. In 1877, A. Kussmaul suggested the theory of â€Å"word blindness† to describe a patient who similar to earlier cases, had lost his ability to read. In 1887, the term alexia was first defined as an inability to comprehend written words by Charcot. All of these predecessors led to the modern term, dyslexia which we use fluidly today. This term was first defined by Bateman in 1890 who had determined a form of verbal amnesia in which a patient had lost his memory of the conventional meaning of language. In 1896, Morgan formulated a revised definition called congenital word blindness, citing a 14-year-old boy who although he functioned on a similar intellectual level with his peers, had a specific difficulty in learning to read. Further comprehension of this disorder surfaced with James Hinshelwood, a surgeon at the Glasgow Eye Infirmary who published a series of articles in the journal â€Å"The Lancet.† These articles dealt more specifically with acquired word blindness than Morgan’s congenital word blindness and after his first experiences with congenital cases in early 1900, Hinshelwood eventually published a book on both forms of word blindness which further defined theories behind the disorders. â€Å"This taxonomic classification system was based upon the performance of the patients when attempting to read. In this regard, Hinshelwood’s formulations and methodology resemble those of contemporary neuropsychology.[3] Hinshelwood’s research led him to create reading guidelines, including a three stage model of learning in which educators could focus their efforts on training students to read proficiently. Part of Hinshelwood’s congenital word blindness related to what he had previously witnessed in adults which were a major trauma or head injury which led to the apparent disorder. His believe was that during the birthing process or at some point during infancy, extreme head trauma or a birth defect had caused the lapse in language abilities, creating the word blindness. Study in the area of reading difficulty continued. In 1925, an American Neurologist named Samuel Orton proposed a theory regarding the specific formation of these disorders. â€Å"According to Orton, reading reversals (e.g. b for d and saw for was) were caused by problems with cerebral dominance in the early stages of reading.†[4] This mirror-image theory was one of the most misconstrued and misunderstood theories of the early twentieth century. By the early seventies, however, the mirror-image theory had been discredited on the basis that while dyslexia affects language functions, it does not seem to affect other visual tasks such as forms of recognition. During the 60’s and 70’s, visual perception and correction of this problem in relation to dyslexia became a debatable theory. â€Å"Marianne Frostig developed a test for visual perception and a remedial training program involving tracing, and copying shapes and patterns.[5]† This test was unsuccessful when paired with dyslexic students and was inappropriately utilized without positive result for some time. In 1962, Herbert Birch proposed the intersensory deficit hypothesis which proposes that because reading utilizes both auditory and visual senses, that there is an innate inability to perform the dual tasks. His theory was also discredited as testing lacked in control mechanisms and an inability to replicate results with consistent reliability plagued Birch and his associates.[6] From these bases of research on dyslexia came a flurry of tests, examinations, theories, discredited scientists, and the debate still continues. Current theories tend to focus on areas of the brain which are abnormally affected by the disorder, but more importantly, research into the techniques required in order to appropriately educate affected individuals has increased. This research, in addition to testing, continues to allow for uniquely afflicted individuals to lead remarkable yet uncured lives. Phonology—From Record to record When dyslexia moves from theory to diagnosis, phonological deficits become measurable symptoms of the disorder. Phonology, or the study and description of the sound changes in a language, can help educators pinpoint and explore specific regions of sound including word pairings and splits. Additionally, it is one of the most affected areas of comprehension relative to dyslexia. â€Å"The amazing discovery is that people systematically ignore certain properties of sounds. They perceive two different sounds as the same sound. We call the stored versions of speech sounds phonemes. Thus phonemes are the phonetic alphabet of the mind. That is, phonemes are how we mentally represent speech; how we store the sounds of words in our memory.† Dyslexia, however, as previously defined, is a disorder in accessing the proper linguistic characteristics as related to reading and writing. Therefore, in extrapolating disability from inability, it is essential to determine whether the child is ph onetically challenged, they have an inability to attach proper synaptic responses to linguistic characteristic, or in a non-dyslexic case, that the problem could be directly related to visual acumen. If there is a possibility that the child has a visual impairment which while serious and requiring further diagnosis and study, it does not decidedly group them into a dyslexic category. â€Å"Overall, studies have shown perceptual deficits: in vision related to impaired motion detection and in phonology related to impaired coding. This impairment is related to symmetry, reversed asymmetry, and lower numbers of neurons in, predominantly, the temporal lobes and visual motion areas of the occipital lobe. Also, the auditory deficits may be closely related to temporal abnormalities that impede speed and accuracy for speech-sound relationships in reading of the planum temporale region, as well as the thalamus near the corpus callosum.†[7] It is this potential brain abnormality which makes this disorder so difficult to define and identifying specifically which deficits contribute directly to the dyslexic tendencies of a child is a most difficult and sometimes impossible process. Additionally, the multitude of theories and definitions of learning disabilities makes the educator’s task of proper identification much more difficult. â€Å"It has been shown that explicit training in phonological awareness can lead to improved word reading; evidence of a reciprocal causal relationship between phonological awareness and reading has also been found.†[8] In assessing potential dyslexics, it is widely held that phonological deficit is one of the most reliable assessors when comparing results from a controlled variety of children. Evaluations of this deficit oftentimes take the place of speed tests, word recognition studies, and testing of verbal fluency. As debate continues about the underlying causal factors of phonological deficit, one powerful theory is that â€Å"cerebellar deficit is the only single explanation of problems in balance, phonology, and speed, and is also one explanation of ‘pure’ phonology/speed problems.†[9] This l ocalized brain failure directly relates many of the predominant symptoms of dyslexia, including combining many different areas of testing and relating them to one overall failure, as opposed to a variety of causes for a multitude of symptoms. Symptoms In order to diagnose and treat such a heterogeneous disorder such as dyslexia, symptomology, or breaking down specific traits and behaviors into repeatable offenses, must be at the forefront of the educator’s investigation. But, when every child’s individual response to the disorder is different, where does one begin to define those unique traits which enable grouping, and therefore, repeatable treatment and disability management? As will be defined in future sections, it is essential to the educator that they are able to differentiate between the textbook dyslexic and the garden variety poor reader. Oftentimes, IQ testing is performed on children to initiate a benchmark for further evaluation of variance from this basis point. Children who exhibit reading variances below the average IQ of the test group cannot be immediately defined as dyslexic. Further investigation involving a variety of controlled examinations must be performed in order to discover the unique sympto ms associated with the particular child’s disability. It must be noted that oftentimes dyslexia is a hidden disorder, primarily because of social pressures placed on children to perform in school. Fear of labeling, coupled with parental disappointment can be a powerful motivator in masking or hiding of dyslexic symptoms. Initial determination of this disorder must be made through observation and recognition of potential warning signs. â€Å"Parents are often aware that their children have some problems with language before they start school. Youngsters with language processing disabilities may be slow in learning to speak, and may use shorter sentences, smaller vocabularies, and poorer grammar than their brothers and sisters did at similar ages.†[10] As symptoms are not easily identified due to lack of visual corroboration, there are a variety of discrepancy principles which are most often utilized for more accurate prognosis. IQ testing will be discussed in detail in further sections, yet, the ability to establish a connection between variances in observed and expected achievement make this form of testing one of the most consistent, yet debated, techniques for initial identification of dyslexic symptoms. Similarly, reading and listening comprehension are often studied in an attempt to determine obvious strengths in one category over the other.[11] Determining that a patient’s reading comprehension is far inferior to his listening does not, however, decidedly diagnose them as dyslexic. This approach must identify the innate deficiency in word identification and contrast those results with alternate discrepancy evaluations. Additionally, the definition of phonological deficiency pervades this model, as dyslexic children can have problems with written and spoken words alike. As dyslexia is clearly a heterogeneous disorder, a variety of symptoms requires varying evaluations, and in both of these discrepancy tests, the symptomology alone does not dictate dyslexia. A third area of discrepancy evaluation relates chronological age to reading age. Yet, historic evaluations of schooling and environmental factors (home environment, access to reading materials, etc) become paramount in determination whether or not the reading proficiency directly correlates to the social environment of the child. Again, it is the predicated evaluation of all apparent and collaborative symptoms which enables accurate diagnosis and appropriate educational tactics. Causality Often confused with symptomology, causality is the identification of the underlying failures contributing directly to the disorder. For dyslexic evaluations, an simplified approach to causality is to determine that a phonological impairment has contributed to an inability to read and write at the same level as their peers. Therefore, treatment tactics will include direct reading training, word recognition instruction, symbolic representation, and intensified reading emphasis. In the next chapter, RTI (responsiveness to intervention) will be discussed as a replacement for the â€Å"wait to fail† approach, which when utilized properly, determines their responsiveness to the training and potentially prevent misdiagnosis. Could the child respond to the phonological training? If there were dramatic improvement through basic teaching tactics which were more localized to poor readers, then perhaps the entire diagnosis of dyslexia could be removed, and focus on reading abilities and f urther instruction would become a priority. However, dyslexia, as previously stated, is a lifetime disability which mandates many changes in lifestyle and learning approach. The underlying causes are irreversible, and proper diagnosis is paramount in determining the best tactics toward normalization. â€Å"The World Federation of Neurology defines dyslexia as a disorder manifested by difficulty in learning to read despite conventional instruction, adequate intelligence, and sociocultural opportunity. It is dependent upon fundamental cognitive disabilities which are frequently of constitutional origin.†[12] Directly related to the phonological impairment is a cerebral malfunction or failure in which not only reading and writing abilities are impaired, motor skills including balance can also be affected. In addition to cerebral malfunctions, it is a well known fact that both sides of the brain process and perform different functions as related to thinking: the left side predominantly controls speech, reading, writing, and numeric processing ability; the ride side controls creativity, musical ability, and imagination. â€Å"Mixed hemispheric dominance† is attributed to the cause of improper phoneme reproduction is due to the brain’s hemispheric responses to stim uli.[13] Therefore, the functions normally controlled by the left half of the brain are delegated in part to the right side, an area not typically charged with these particular functions. Dyslexics are often characterized as picture thinkers, or students who tend to think and speak in very imaginative capacities, often formulating speech as though they were painting a picture. In this scenario, the causality of photo-dictation is directly related to a confused hemispheric dominance. It is important, however, to note that assumption of causal relation to dyslexic symptoms can only be validated through intense scientific research and neurological study. Causes of this impairment are readily defined, but oftentimes troublesome in clinical corroboration. Mythological Muddle or Modern Mystery It is the duty and underlying objective of the scientist to investigate all causes and symptoms of a particular disorder in order to determine without a doubt the symbiotic relationship between the two and repeatability of testing procedures with future patients. Therefore, it would stand to reason that as time passes and frequency of variance within investigation techniques subsides, that scientific data would affirm one theory of dyslexia above all others. Unfortunately, the heterogeneity of this disorder has left a lifetime of neurologists without a solid foothold from which to hoist concrete scientific evidence as to the causes and treatments for dyslexia. The most problematic area of the body has proven to be the brain, and for obvious reasons, interpreting its responses to educational stimuli is a difficult and painstaking task. Study aside, cultural mores supply myths which often muddle educated theories regarding dyslexia. One myth as qualified by an ignorant teacher of a dyslexic student was â€Å"well, I mean, it’s one of those things that has been conjured up by pushy parents for their thick or lazy children, quite often both.†[14] These myths affect cultural perception as well as tactics educators explore in relation to future education of clinically diagnosed dyslexics. It is essential to the support and appropriate treatment of dyslexia that the dispelling of common myths becomes a priority. The following represents some of the most prevalent, but certainly not all myths associated with this disorder. Myths: All dyslexics read backwards As previously stated, dyslexia is not simply a â€Å"backwards reading disorder.† While letter and word manipulation is a result of the disorder, not all dyslexics view words backwards. Oftentimes mirrored writing is an effect, yet proper teaching and techniques enable dyslexics to read and write over time as well as non-impaired individuals. Dyslexia only affects reading Discussion of symptomology of this disorder clearly shows that writing, listening, even motor skills are often affected by dyslexia. Phonological impairment does not limit dyslexic symptoms to poor reading alone. The inability to appropriately process and utilize language, words, and letters affects all areas related to these categories. Dyslexics have a poor sense of direction Dyslexics are often grouped into a category of individuals with poor sense of direction, and ones who are often clumsy or inept. While dyslexia can oftentimes cause a directional confusion, it is a trait which is dictated by the unique affectation of a heterogeneous affliction. Dyslexia can be cured Scientific advancements have challenged the confines of the human mind, yet manipulation of the brain, moreover, repair of major cerebral impairments, is as of date an impossibility with relation to dyslexia. Many dyslexics will learn to live normally with their impairment; many have already gone on to become great historical figures, yet curing this disorder is simply a task charged to the neurologists of the future. My parents can read so I am not dyslexic The genetic link between relatives and dyslexia is apparent and proven. The misconception however lies within the idea that genetic correlation is linked directly to the parents. Heredity and dyslexia form a bond within a family’s genetic makeup, enabling the link to come from oftentimes removed relatives, Uncle, Aunt, Grandfather. Dyslexia is a hereditary disorder and further research into a family tree reveals the path of its emergence.[15] Dyslexia, a mystery to scientists and educators for over one hundred years, presents children with challenges unlike other afflictions. The inability to localize the gene or regional affectation which causes dyslexia presents an almost hopeless image of what, in other scenarios, might be considered a gift. It is the unique modifications made by the mind which enable dyslexics to processes other areas of learning more quickly than other students, and this compensation oftentimes more than outweighs the debilitation of a decrease in language comprehension. Personal Affectation—Why Me? Scientific study aside, the human factor relative to living with dyslexia is prevalent and worthy of discussion. A child in an educationally pervasive society with expectations and standards thrust on him on a regular basis would find his inability to read common words not only frustrating but frightening. From a psychological standpoint, abnormality in a very standardized environment causes great confusion among children. Their inability to fully comprehend the situation will often lead to masking tactics in addition to rebellious behavior which carries the potential for misdiagnosis. The perspective of a potential dyslexic is that they will be ridiculed in school settings for their differences and perhaps even placed in remedial classes in order to help them have a full and prosperous education. It is the responsibility of the educator as well as the parents to address this particular affliction, not as an illness but as a gift. Reminding students that a very impressive list of famous and successful dyslexics exists today and that more are added to it yearly allows for a comfort factor which can offset some of the fear. Creating an educational blueprint which navigates the student through the symptoms and adaptations of dyslexia and assists them to define a life of normalcy is a priority. The upcoming chapter will discuss the specific processes which can assist a student in a prosperous and diverse lifestyle in addition to addressing and identifying the unique factors of their disorder which may eventually help neurologists pinpoint the cause of dyslexia. Chapter Two Sitting before his teacher, hands clenched tightly in front of him on the desk, the student waited with anticipation as the cards were raised one at a time. The pictures were familiar, the writing seemed like something he had seen once before but it didn’t make sense. The instructor slowly prompted the wary student, the sounds forming behind tight lips. His first steps towards living with dyslexia had begun. Introduction The following chapter will not only evaluate dyslexia based upon specific traits and the modern techniques utilized to explore and define the disorder, it will explore the potential benefits of choosing each uniquely suited tactic in the attempt to properly diagnose and treat with accuracy. Necessity or Misdiagnosis â€Å"Congratulations, you have dyslexia.† This is not exactly a reasonable statement for a neurologist to make to a grade school child who is afflicted with the malady. Nor can he treat the diagnosis as though he has spelled the end of a normal lifestyle for this frightened adolescent. It is important for educators to note that the process which is undertaken in order to get to this step, the ultimate diagnosis of the disorder, must be recognized, internalized, and practiced on a regular basis in order to avoid unfortunate misdiagnosis. The student who stands on his desk and yells mild obscenities at the top of his lungs will not only gain laughs from his classmates, but will most likely enjoy a trip to the school counselor. Should he appear restless and frustrated as his problems are probed, the counselor will suggest further examination. Eventually, ADD, Attention Deficit Disorder could become the prognosis, and Ritalin the drug of choice for overcoming this unfortunate scenario. And perhaps Ritalin does not work and the school performance continues to falter, then another trip to the physician and another diagnosis, yet a complete absence of alternate thinking regarding the disability is present at this time. The poor spelling and scribbled essays are completely forgotten in exchange for a reprise from destructive and irascible behavior. It is the failure of the teacher to note the extreme inability to read aloud in front of the class and realize that the reaction to his embarrassment is the disruptive nature for which they are medicating. An ability to recognize, diagnose with accuracy, and utilize trained teaching abilities to inspire change and growth are qualities that are lacking in many of today’s teachers. It’s not a failure of their intelligence by any means, nor is it the training they have received; it is that there are simply too many variables from which to accurately diagnose learning disabilities in children. Experience, coupled with comprehension of relevant learning categories is essential to proper dyslexic diagnosis. Family and heredity, as stated before, is essential to understanding the child’s genetic makeup. If there is a history of dyslexia within the family, closer attention can be paid to specific traits which are associated with the disorder than if there were not such congruence. Language skills are additionally a priority, as these abilities are essentially the area in question when formulating a diagnosis. Evaluation of comprehension, word identification, pronunciation and word retrieval are only a few of the basic categories from which to test a child. Reading, aloud and silently should also be tested. Listening to the child and analyzing particular word confusion, in addition to pronunciation issues will allow for important data to be drawn. Additionally, querying the child regarding reading comprehension can give insight into how the child processes the information they are taking in. Spelling and writing are essential as well. Looking for obviously inverted spelling in addition to word mirroring can be essential to the appropriate diagnosis. Handwriting as well becomes a necessary category from which to draw conclusions. Letter formation, balance of lines, spaces, paper alignment, all are paramount to proper evaluation. Memory becomes a category for study, as all time frames should be probed, from long to short term, in addition to visual memory. It is through the mastery of evaluation of these categories, as well as experience with the basic psychology relevant to children of this age and proclivity, that will enable the educator or evaluator to appropriately diagnose and if all else fails, point the student towards the correct diagnosis and treatment center. Phonological Instruction The previously discussed phonological failure contributing to dyslexia warrants a structured approach to therapy and instruction. Nearly unanimously, researchers agree that proper phonological instruction is a priority for all school children, and even more necessitated with children diagnosed with dyslexia. â€Å"The general findings suggest that early and direct teaching of sound-symbol relationships produces better decoding skills than later and less explicit phonics instruction (Clark, 83).†[16] Synthetic Phonics Instruction In this approach to phonological instruction, a specific phoneme is separated and taught to the child prior to blending or inclusion in syllables or entire words. ie. /ph/ is inscribed on cue cards where the student learns to recognize an image of a phone through sight in addition to phoneme. Once this process has been appropriately completed and the student exhibits repeatable comprehension of the relationship, the phoneme is synthesized within words with letters that are already known so that the child may read them. Synthetic relationships are in this way established between objects, letters, and phoneme. Intrinsic Phonics Instruction As suggested by its title, this form of phonetic instruction utilizes complete words, beginning with those that are most often already known to the children. The patients are then encouraged to draw relationships between the letters, practicing phoneme and letter relationship at one time rather than learning segments and then grouping them to create words. One program which has successfully adopted the Synthetic Phonetic approach to dyslexic instruction was initiated by the wife and co-scientist of Samuel Orton in collaboration with her partner Anna Gillingham in 1960. The approach was summarized through the following distinguishing features: It is a direct approach to the study of phonics, presenting